B&O Trainman 40' DD Boxcar Question

[Dave V]

When I ordered my Super Trees from MBK, I included an order for a Trainman 40' double door B&O boxcar with the intent of running it along with my PRR 1950s stuff.  Now, before I get Steve riled up, my typical modus operandi is to take the most care with "home road" stuff (PRR, PC, and CR) in terms of accuracy, while being happy to do the Trainman and MTL foobie thing for foreign roads.  I enjoy researching my home roads, but am less enthusiastic about researching every railroad's roster to the same depth.  My PRR roster could always use some foreign road stuff, and this seemed like a nice, generic car to meet that end.  That, and the double door made it different than Steve's favorite PS1.



It's actually a very nicely rendered car; the photo above doesn't do the crispness of lettering and detail justice.  But, in the photo, I couldn't make out the paint date.  I sort of convinced myself it was 1959, which is acceptable to me (most of my Pennsy-era cars are pre-1956) since the scheme looked like one I'd seen in my steam-era Pennsy books.

Well, unless my Optivisor is lying, the date looks like 1969!  The built date is 1946, so that checks out.

Can you B&O folks confirm that this scheme was used in the later 50s?  The alternative is to weather the crap out of it, add ACI labels and COTS and make it 1980 Conrail era, but I'm doubting very many of these guys survived that long.

Thoughts?

[sizemore]

IIRC this is a 60's simplified scheme. For it to be correct for earlier 50's dates it would need to be a larger "13 states herald". Skipgear could probably shed more light on it. Grab the GMM detail kit and replace the brakewheel and it's a half-decent car (but definitely not Steve worthy no matter how scale or detailed).

The S.

[wm3798]

Mail it to me... it's perfect!

Lee

[Dave V]

Heh...  Looks like my fat fingers derailed that MTL LNE X29.  Needs weathering, but not bad.  Ride height looks a little higher than I thought.



But it looks fine with my late 50s stuff.

[SkipGear]

Dave,
 I am pretty sure it is fine. As with everything, exceptions can be found. I sent you a PDF of basic B&O boxcar lettering drawings. It shows the B&O and Capitol dome swapped on the drawing. I think after 67 or so, they were changed from the drawing to the way the car is painted, so the car is correct, or at least close enough.

Here is one in the Time Saver scheme that made it into the late 70's.
http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/bo/bo294824gob.jpg

And the same scheme as the Atlas car rotting on the ground in '86.
http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/bo/bo2987xx-agd.jpg

[Dave V]

Tony,

Right, thanks for the PDF.  The question is:  Do it up as a beater for 1980, run it in 1956 with a post-'62 scheme, or send it to Lee with some decoder installs?

Gotta think about this 'un.

[Philip H]

Option 1.  Option 2 may well end up bugging you at som epoint, and I don't know Lee well enough, but I assume feeding his addiction may be illegal in Maryland.

unless, of course, you had some IC/ICG or KCS cars to send me as a method of keepin gmy mouth shut . . . .

 

[wm3798]

But if you send it to me, you can write it off...  I just got my paycheck Friday, and I can assure you, I'm a non-profit!

Lee

[asciibaron]

per the Oct 1967 ORER:

AAR type code B103

length 42' 11"
width 10' 3"
height from rail 14' 5"

door opening width 14'
door opening height 9' 10"

number of cars - 7

does it say it's an M-59?  there were several variations on the car thus the low number - each variation is listed in the ORER.

send it to me.  i'll send you a PRR door seal.

[H Lee]

Tony,

Right, thanks for the PDF.  The question is:  Do it up as a beater for 1980, run it in 1956 with a post-'62 scheme, or send it to Lee with some decoder installs?

Gotta think about this 'un.

Since it isn't a home road I would run it in 1956 - the scheme 'looks' right for the 1950's, early 1960's........ even if it is really late 1960's, 1970's era.

One question I have - not related to the paint scheme - it appears to me from the photo that the coupler pocket ends at the car end and does not have the 'med-extended' design of the original accu-mate. Is this true? Or, is it just the angle of the photo?

Thanks

[Dave V]

Might just be the photo, H...  In real life it looks no different than any other Atlas car.  I like the Atlas trucks overall, but the couplers bug me for 1. having unnecessarily long shanks and 2. those freaking trip pins popping out.  I love the Atlas Delrin wheelsets, though.  I'm replacing my MTLs with FVM, but I'm in much less of a hurry to convert my Atlas stuff.

[CBQ Fan]

These are really nice.  They look at home on my layout which is mid 50's to late 60's!

[Ed Kapuscinski]

I'm really hoping that Atlas decides to do some of their 50' trainman cars in CR. They may be foobies, but CR's 50' boxcar fleet was such a mess that they'll fit right in.

I just hope they do them in a common theme (PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE contact the CRHS about this...) instead of some one-off job like MTL did with their recent CR 50' car.